Redemption
by SM.Bell
Summary: "I betrayed everything for her. You think I won't search to the ends of the earth for her? The last person you should have went after was Hermione Granger." When Hermione finds herself thrown seven years in the past, she has to decide what to change, if anything at all. Without a clear way back, the possibility of being stuck looms overhead. A/U
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

**Prologue:**

Hermione looked up, just a quick glance, to see who had entered her office without knocking and rolled her eyes at the familiar face before looking back at get paperwork, trying to ignore the new presence.

She was almost through, almost lucky enough to actually finish, without interruption when he finally spoke. She used all of her willpower to ignore him because he was complaining, which was the only thing he came to get office to do, and she really needed to finish the paperwork. Unlike jet usual self, she'd put it off until last minute and it had to be on her bosses desk before the end of the day.

"Granger, are you even listening to me?"

She looked up, startled. She'd been doing such a fine job of ignoring him that she hadn't noticed him walking over to get. Mere inches from her face, he looked like a petulant child.

"No." She said simply, turning back to get parchment.

"Whatever. Hurry up." He snarled, sitting in the grand chair on the other side of her desk.

It was a monstrous thing, made of fine material. It was certainly not an office chair. It was, however, a gift from him to her that was really for him when he came to her office, which was most of the time.

"Are you done yet?" He asked impatiently five minutes later and she frowned at him.

"One more word and I'll not hesitate to hex you." She warned in annoyance.

When she had foamy finished, he was looking at her angrily.

"I'm done."

"About bloody time! Now, let's get something to eat." He stood up, dusting invisible lint from his clothing. "And what in Merlins name are you wearing? Is that _muggle_ clothing? Mudblood written all over you. We make the same pay, I know you can afford decent clothing."

Hermione rolled her eyes and let him ramble on. After six years of having Draco Malfoy as her partner, she was used to him. He no longer used such words to degrade her, it just simply was. Any other time she heard the word, she winced and rubbed the raised, angry looking scar on her arm branding her as such.

Perhaps it stopped bothering her when he used it the day he carved it into a purebloods forehead for calling her the same name.

"You're ignoring me again."

"You're annoying me." She pointed out.

Draco wasn't one for small talk, simply complaining, when they were alone or only she could hear.

He frowned at her, opening his mouth. By the surly look on his face, surely to complain some. Before he could though, a shrieking alarm sounded through the Ministry.

"What is that awful sound?" He asked, his handsome face twisting into a foul scowl.

"We're under attack!" She said loudly.

She heard running feet coming from the direction they'd just left and before she could fully turn, a yellow light hit her and suddenly she felt as if she was falling.


	2. Chapter One

_ Redemption is something you have to fight for in a very personal, down-dirty way. Some of our characters lose that, some stray from that, and some regain it._

_-Joss Whedon_

**Chapter One:**

Draco roughly hit the man across the face, knocking his neat hair out of place so it fell messily across his face.

"Where is she?" He snarled, hitting him again.

He wasn't much for the muggle style of fighting. He much preferred his wand to anything physical. His... Hermione liked to hit, though. And he felt it only appropriate.

"Where is she?!" He screamed, his composure long gone.

If he wasn't the key to her whereabouts, he'd be slowly, painfully killing the man.

Before he could hit him again, somebody was walking into the interrogation room. He barely looked to see it was Harry Potter before slamming an angry fist into his face again.

"This won't help." Harry said with barely disguised disgust.

"It's certainly helpful to me." He turned with a snarl. "I'm sure you'd rather leave her wherever it is he sent her."

Harry flinched at the statement and Draco gave him a filthy look.

"I made a mistake then." Harry said softly.

"A mistake? You left her. You and your filthy traitor of a friend. You left her in the Manor with Bellatrix, with _me._" Draco gave him an especially cruel look. "I don't want your help here, Potter. And let me speak for her. She wants nothing to do with you, not would she want your help. Remember her screams as you fled? Leave."

* * *

"I promise to take notes next time but if I don't them in the assignment, Snape will have my head!" Ron rushed to explain.

Hermione looked at him, taking a couple steps back, her wand at the ready. She looked to his left where Harry was watching her with a worried expression.

Trying to take in the rest of her surroundings, she tried to think of spells that could recreate of thing of her memories. Calculating quickly, the only possible answer was obvious. A logical person, Hermione dropped her arm, looking between Harry and Ron.

If she was here, though...

She took off running from the common room without backwards glance, barely aware of her old friends taking up after her. She knew it was a long shot and not exactly her brightest plan but she knew he often times hung around the lake so she'd look their first.

Without slowing, she raced out of the castle onto the grounds and raced for the lake, feeling her heart soar when she saw him. Stuck am off thing, that if she was still in her Hogwarts years, she would've never thought to try and find Draco, let alone seek him and him alone.

Seven years could change a lot.

Rushing over to him, she stopped a few feet short. Pansy was there, along with Crabbe and Goyle. Blaise was sneering already, Malfoy beside him. She looked over them first, almost afraid to look at Draco after foolishly seeking him out. What if he hadn't made the odd trip back with her?

Surely he'd have already started looking for her, too. Looking at him after an awkward moment, she saw the blatant disgust on his face, the Cold hate in his eyes. If she'd been asked that morning, she'd have said Draco hadn't changed from his school days very much.

He was arrogant, much too proud, still believed many below him. He was cold and mean, sending many people to tears with a few choice words. But looking at the Draco of Hogwarts, she realized that was a lie. He had changed in many ways. He had morals, his dislike of people stemmed from their 'inability to create a useful thought' rather than their blood.

"Draco, I need to speak with you." She said carefully as Harry and Ron came to a stop behind her.

"You dare speak my name, mudblood?" He said venomously.

She felt a sharp pang in get heart. It wasn't her Draco, now without a doubt. She let out a shaky breath, running her arm over her arm where the scar from Bellatrix lay. It broke her heart and every fiber of her being felt ready to explode. She was back in Hogwarts without an honest clue how to get back and her one true friend from the future was looking at her like she was lower than the dirt on his trainers.

Harry gently put a hand on her shoulder and she flinched back, turning to look into his eyes. She started to tell him off when she saw the concern in his eyes. In her time, in her perfect little world, the only look Harry Potter gave her rivaled between guilt and contempt.

Shaking off his hand, she looked to Draco again. With a very naive, very silly hope still nestled in her throbbing heart, she spoke again.

"_Benefium accipere libertatem est vendere._" She said softly. It was a simple phrase, one that might not mean anything to him yet, or could mean very much. Even so, it might not even spark something in him, especially from her lips. But it was all she had. His favorite saying.

To accept a favor is to sell one's freedom.

Walking hastily away, Harry and Ron obediently followed. She politely excused herself when they were back inside, not yet ready to settle with the fact that they were her only solace in a place she wished to be rid of.

Finding her way to Dumbledore's office, she listed on candies until the stairway jumped to life. She stepped on and rode it up, stepping off when it stopped. She knocked hard on his door, hoping he was inside.

Not a moment later he opened it with twinkling eyes and motioned her in. When she found her seat, she opened her mouth without thought of the consequences.

"Professor, I was in the middle of going to eat when I was hit by a spell. Only, I wasn't here and I wasn't... I wasn't so young. I believe I was hit with something that sent me to this time."

"This time?" He asked, a new light sparked his eyes.

"Yes. You see, I was twenty-three and now, well now I'm not."

* * *

AU. Don't worry, guys. All will be right. This is most certainly not a Harry/Ron bashing. But shit happens. Read and find out why and when along the way it did. And as always, REVIEW! (:


	3. Chapter Two

_Don't apologize for the wrongdoings of your past. Redemption isn't about saying sorry. It's about forgiveness and doing the right thing when before you were doing wrong._

-Hermione Granger.

A/N: This time before the chapter. Expect less errors on this one, as I've finally set up my old, dusty computer. Before I was updating through my phone, shame on me. Though, you can still expect a few updates from there, so the mistakes in writing will still be plentiful. Thanks for the support so far from this story. I will be updating as I complete the chapter, so sometimes it will be fast, others not so.

**Chapter Two:**

Draco paced the hall in Hermione's home. He'd been there a multitude of times. More often than not, he was spending the night at her place, rather than the Manor with his mother. He wasn't able to be in the place without remembering the dark days during the war.

Stopping to slam a fist into one of her walls and not bothering to fix it, he knew that Hermione would berate him to no end when he finally saw her return to her rightful place.

He still wasn't sure where she was, where she could possibly be that she hadn't yet returned. In an hour, it would mark her second day gone. Sliding to the floor, his back to the wall, he practically collapsed into himself.

Nothing felt right without her nagging voice in his ears, telling him to be nicer and her brown eyes rolling as he complained, knowing it annoyed her to no end. He missed the way it was _so_ easy with her.

He hung his head, letting the tears come to his eyes.

If he had been asked the morning that Hermione had disappeared if he'd miss her, he'd have laughed and joked that she was a thorn in his side, even if it was a complete, joking lie. He would have said it to see the indignant look on her face. But for her to really be gone, it felt like a piece of him was missing.

Draco Malfoy wasn't one for pity or crying over things that couldn't be changed. Bloody hell, he wasn't one for crying at all. He'd watched his father sent to Azkaban, only to be buried a year later. He'd watched Pansy die in a way they were destined to lose, he'd watched Hermione tortured. He'd seen things, done things, that deserved no redemption. That deserved little more than a life sentence to the very place his father had died. But _she_ had given him a chance. And now she was missing.

It hurt to a part of his soul that felt like left him fighting to breath when it felt like the world was collapsing in on him.

He was barely aware of the distinct _Pop!_ which singled somebody had entered Hermione's home. But he was, ever so slightly aware, so when a pair of hairs clicked down the glossy tiles of the hall, he looked up to see his mother with a look of apprehension on her face before falling into one of infinite sadness as she looked upon him.

For the first time in years, she crouched beside him and wrapped an arm around his shoulders, just like he was young again. She wasn't a warm person, or even a kind person in any remarkable way that made people think of her for comfort in their grief, but in that moment, she was a mom mourning for her son while he cried, and for that he was more grateful than he was ashamed for her to see him in such a state.

"We will find her, I promise." She whispered, not a particular fan of the girl but liking her despite herself simply because of the way she made her son smile. After all, she hadn't seen her boy smile genuinely like that for many, many years.

* * *

Hermione paced the aisles of the library, searching for anything that might help her. She'd already pulled dozens of books of traveling through time, the properties behind time turners, or anything else that might give her the slightest idea of how to get back.

But so far, nothing had given her much hope. After her initial contact with Dra- with Malfoy, she'd avoided him avidly, even ditching classes she knew she shared with him. Harry and Ron were watching her like they didn't even know her and really, they didn't. She was an entirely different person than her sixteen year old self. Besides, knowing the events that would unfold in the future, she didn't much mind the distance that was being created between them.

With a frustrated sigh, she turned onto the next aisle, only to see Malfoy standing there, looking with frustration between the two books in his hands.

In an unconscious move, she covered the few feet between them and looked at the titles of the books from his side.

"What are you looking for?" She asked, all business.

He turned, startled, to look at her, his face morphing to contempt instantly. Taking a step back, she berated herself. _This_ wasn't her Draco. She _knew_ that. She was in Hogwarts, for Merlins sake. But in a moments time, she'd forgotten that at the look of frustration, knowing she could help.

"Dumbledore forced me into Muggle Studies this year." He answered grudgingly after a moment. "I'm trying to find out what a..." His face twisted into disgust. "What a telephone is."

Hermione held back a laugh, aware that he'd snarl in her face, hurl insults at her, then stalk away in a very Malfoy way.

"It's a device used for communication." She said instead of laughing after a difficult moment of keeping the mirth from her face and voice. "I suppose you couldn't very well ask a Slytherin for help, including only purebloods grace your house."

His face twisted one into disgust.

"I'm not asking you for help either." He snarled, shoving the books back onto the shelf in a way that almost made Hermione protest at their mistreatment. "Where did you hear that quote? The one from before."

"A good friend once told me it. He said that it could mean two things. If somebody asked for a favor and you agreed, you had to help or it would make them failures, which was unacceptable. However, if you were the one asking for the favor, then you were suddenly indebted to the one who helped you and would, in turn, one day have to do as they asked of you."

She watched his eyes widen a fraction before narrowing, calculating her.

"And who was this friend?" He asked.

"Somebody I used to know." She whispered, a suddenly feeling of despair sweeping through her. Would she ever be returned to him?

"I see." He paused. "If you so much as speak a word of this to anyone, I'll have your neck, Granger. Now, tell me more about this telephone."

She smiled, ushering him into a more private area of the library. The books were dusty and unused, a place even she didn't care to visit in her Hogwarts years. They were all boring and outdated, very little use to her. She knew they'd be uninterrupted and he'd have little to worry about, being with her and all.

Using her wand to turn her scarf into a piece of parchment, causing his eyes to widen at her casual use of Transfiguration, and the skill to do so, she used her wand again to transfigure herself a quill. Drawing with quick, precise movements she created a phone.

"The numbers, there, are used to call. You type in the number that you need and then you'll hear a ringing when you put this piece, here, up to your ear. Usually, the other person answers with their own phone and you'll able to speak with them." She explained, falling into an easy speech pattern as she continued to explain to him the uses of the telephone, even going into as much detail as to explain to him the reason behind how a telephone worked and who had first created the device.

"You're knowledge about such things is saddening, Granger." He said in a cutting tone and she stopped where she had been, feeling hurt at his harsh words.

"I suppose you know what you need now. I'll be taking my leave." She stood up swiftly, dropping her wand with the sudden movement. She reached for it quickly and snapped back into place as Malfoy stood, too.

"And as I'm now indebted to you, Granger..." He hesitated, dislike clear in his eyes. "I'll grant you the permission of telling me what you sought me out for before."

Hermione recoiled. Did she really need his help? _No_. He'd be little help to her. She'd wanted him before simply because he was her friend. Only, not here. He was the second brightest student, behind her, but she was no longer a student in the mental sense of the word.

"One day, I'll need your help." She said instead. "It won't be for a while now but you'll realize what I mean when when the time comes. I can only ask that you be sure to help me then, because it will be crucial."

With that, she turned and walked away.

* * *

Hermione met Draco much the same the next day, only he'd been looking for her rather. She had been stooped over a book detailing time travel in theory rather than actual experience, but it was more than she'd been able to find yet, including the only definite experiences of time travel had been through use of the time turner, and never so far in the past.

"What's a television?" He asked in an agitated tone.

She looked up in surprise. Draco was, by definition, graceful. He often times snuck up on her, but she'd been so drawn into her book that it startled her greatly on this particular occasion.

"Another muggle contraption." She said shortly, turning back to her book.

She'd decided earlier that same day that she wouldn't subject herself to him anymore than absolutely necessary. She wouldn't be made to feel like scum when she was nothing of the sort. Even when reluctantly seeking her help, she noted, there was disgust in his eyes and his full lips were twisted in a cruel sneer.

"Obviously." He snarled. "However, I have no idea what in Merlins beard it could possibly be as I'm not a filthy, disgusting, creature such as yourself."

She stood up, feeling fire in her veins. If her Draco were there, he wouldn't stand for such talk. Well, he would. But certainly _not_ directed at her. She sighed, sitting back down at that. Her Draco wasn't there and she needed to understand that. She wasn't a stupid or thickheaded woman but something about accepting that Draco wasn't there, _right there_, by her side made her feel that she simply could not go on.

So instead of storming off as she knew she should, she once again drew a television and gave him a description of what it did and its origins. When she was finished she stood, pointing at an aisle to the far left of the library.

"Go past three bookshelves, then take a left where the library opens into the south wing. The first bookcase to the left is dedicated to muggles. It'll be very useful to you. And then you won't have to sully yourself to be in the presence of a lowly mudblood." She said it in a defeated tone, the fight all out of her.

Again, without another word, she walked away to indulge herself in a cry.


	4. Chapter Three

_Between the radiant white of a clear conscience and the coal black of a conscience sullied by sin lie many shades of gray-where most of us live our lives. Not perfect but not beyond redemption._

-Sheryl L. Hope.

**Chapter Three:**

It was on her fifth day, as Hermione was explaining what a computer was, out on the edges of the Forbidden Forest, where they'd started meeting on the third day. It was already dark out, but she didn't much care and Malfoy was never one to follow the rules. She was leaning back against one of the trees, unsure of how exactly to get him to understand, as he kept stopping her and peppering her in questions in a belittling tone even as he was the one at a disadvantage.

She sighed and looked to her left, his gaze following hers simply for lack of something better to do. It was then that it happened, unexpected and leaving her breathless. She had almost forgotten how horrible the attacks were. With Draco, her Draco, they didn't happen.

She struggled to remember that though she was in her teenage years, she was not, in fact, still in the middle of a war. But the thought of never going home, by chance getting caught again, she stood up and ran. For what, she didn't know. Perhaps her life. Crying and stumbling, she didn't even look where she was running and before she knew it, she was in Dumbledore's office, not even bothering to knock before entering.

He didn't look startled, not that she ever remembered him being startled, and she cried. She cried for the loss of her own life, the loss of all those lives in the war, the loss of her home as it had become, the loss of Draco, but mostly she cried because even after so long, the war still haunted her.

Dumbledore just sat and watched her as she bumbled around, snot and tears running down her face, every once in a while she'd roughly shove a hand under her nose to erase some of the embarrassing substance.

When she'd finally calmed down enough to talk, she turned to the headmaster and took a seat across from him. It was a difficult thing, to look at him and know he'd be dead. As far as she knew, it was the year that Sirius would die. Perhaps he already had.

"I can't be here." She said in a voice full of finality, like just saying it would be the end of her little trip. But it changed nothing, and still she sat across from her long dead mentor. "It could change things. I could change things. Maybe I _want_ to change things. And you know how very illegal that is, how very horribly wrong things could go. I _can't_ be here."

"Perhaps you're here because you were meant to change things." He said in an altogether too calm voice.

Hermione growled, as it could be called nothing more or less, and threw her hands up in frustration. "You do not understand, Professor. The things I've seen, the things I know that will happen, they _must_ happen for the future to turn out as it has."

"And how has it turned out?" He asked with a twinkle in his eyes.

"You know I can't tell you that." She whispered, looking down at her hands and she placed them back in her lap. "It could change things, too."

"There is a reason for all things in this world, Hermione. Things are difficult, and perhaps are not as you wish them to be, but you were sent here to this particular time for a reason, that much is clear. And should you find a way back, you're a very clever witch. I'm sure you could find a way to erase your time here."

"I'm not the same as the Hermione you know here." She suddenly said, not pertaining to the conversation in any foreseeable way.

"You don't seem so changed. You're very intelligent and brave. You're as much of a fighter, that much is clear."

"I'm selfish, Professor. Maybe I don't want things to change. Maybe I'd rather the people die that have died than have to go back to a world that I don't know. Go back to place where _he's_ not waiting for me." She shook her head.

"Then you have changed more than I would have guessed. The Hermione that I know isn't a coward." Dumbledore said in voice, not unkindly.

"Perhaps if you were alive in my time, you would be a coward, too." She said angrily, leaving him silent as she stormed from the room.

* * *

Hermione sat across from Harry and Ron, every inch of her itching with how uncomfortable she was. Looking at Harry, she wasn't sure how she'd ever wondered at his godfather's fate. Harry looked lively and happy, despite the stress of Voldemort. After Sirius had died, there had been a look in his eyes that never left. He had never quite been the same again.

And Ron... He was so different than she remembered. He hated her back in her own time. He never looked at her like he was right then, with adoration and puppy love. She'd been so blind to it when she had been a child. She wondered if siding with Draco had really been the breaking point in their friendship, or perhaps when she'd admitted that after the Manor that there would never be a chance for him and her.

Maybe she'd been the one to ruin their friendship, something she'd often wondered over. But sitting back in time with them, she couldn't help but wonder if just changing a few things would perhaps change the entire course of their future. She wasn't sure. It'd been too long since she'd been a child. Her time at Hogwarts, even the war, was a blur to her. There had been so much death, so much fighting, her own torture and imprisonment. She was seeing a therapist, loath as she was to admit it. The blasted woman thought it was so hard for her to remember details because of her eagerness to forget her past after her time in the Manor.

So later when Harry shouted about Sirius being captured by Voldemort in the Ministry, she struggled within herself on whether or not she should even go.

* * *

"Mr. Malfoy, we're taking you off of the case." Minister Shacklebolt said softly, not quite able to look the Malfoy patriarch in the eyes. Going on before he could blow up, he continued, "You're methods are not Ministry approved and I quite understand that this _is_ Hermione we're talking about, but we don't usually let someone work on such a personal case. It's been close to a week and all you've managed to do is beat the suspect into a bloody pulp. We've decided to let the aurors take over, as it is in their department."

"By aurors, I'm sure you mean Potter and Weasley?" Draco asked coldly, a deadly edge to his voice.

"I'm sorry, Draco. My hands are tied. Mr. Potter is the head of the auror department and he's pushing it and as it _is_ his department, it's be unethical to deny him." Kingsley said sadly, finally looking into Draco's cold gray eyes. "Should you decide to take leave of the Ministry, for grieving purposes, of course, I would give you paid leave. It would be unacceptable to take your paperwork on the case thus far, and if the suspect go missing, it would also be unacceptable. Should you further your investigation, measures will have to be taken. But paperwork does get misplaced, suspects are known to escape, and it would be unforgivable to harass you while you're on your leave. With the being said, I will allow you to know, since they are taking over and it's only courteous, Mr. Potter will be taking over the investigation tomorrow, no sooner."

Draco looked at the Minister in surprise before rushing from the room. It didn't take him long to get to his office and gather up the paperwork, from there, he rushed to the interrogation room, one of his own and thankfully not monitored by the Ministry. He gave the man tied to the seat a feral grin before slapping his hand down on his shoulder.

"Change of plans." He said dangerously before they disappeared with a _Pop!_

* * *

A/U. SOOOOOOOOO sorry about the wait. Hope you guys like it. I work full time, which means forty hours week and usually a ton of overtime with a couple doubles thrown in just cause my boss loves to torture me. But things should be a lot smoother since I'm back to my regular schedule, which still means forty hour weeks but no overtime and no doubles, finger crossed. LOL. So, hope you guys liked the little twist.

Honestly, I don't know 100% where I'm going with this, or what the end will be. So it'll be a surprise for all of us. Perhaps Draco will end up back in time, or Hermione will live through time again and meet up with Draco when it's all done. Maybe she'll fall in love with younger Draco. Or maybe none of those. Decisions, decisions, hahahahahhaa.

Wellllllll, REVIEW! Sorry if I'm a bit wacky. Today was crazy, no breaks-no lunch-a full eight hours of pure running so I'm a bit out of it. (:


	5. Chapter Four

A/U: Another one before the story. Welllll, a reviewer gave me a brilliant idea, so this may be a bit rocky as I try to work this in, as it was never an idea I'd had myself. As such, you'll have to ride this chapter through with me as it throws us all for a loop.

As such, I'd liked to dedicate this chapter to **Elased**, not only for inspiring me to write two chapters, two days in a row, but also for being a bit of a muse for this.

As I said, this was never something I'd thought of. Originally, to be honest, I hadn't planned on not taking Draco along with her for the trip to the past. I'm work best when I let my mind wander and jump from place to place, so this is a bit exciting for me, as well.

I should also mention, I'm sure it's pretty obvious by now I'm only following ideas from the book, not the exact story line. Sirius 'abducted' and toadface not yet mentioned, Dumbledore is still around. With that being said, I'm winging it. I'm writing what I like.

* * *

_You think I want redemption? I'm not a good person. I've done things that deserve no forgiveness. But I don't care to be better. That's the difference between us, Granger. You pretend to be better and good and all things that people look up to. But you were there with me and you never protested to the things I did, the evil I harbored in my soul._

-Draco Malfoy

**Chapter Four:**

Hermione bounced on the balls of her feet as she stood in Dumbledore's office with McGonagall, Ron rubbing the sleep from his eyes, and Harry shouting about the danger Sirius was in.

"And is he?" Dumbledore asked, turning to look at Hermione.

She pursed her lips, and glared hard at the headmaster. She didn't like the implications or the idea that should he need to know anything, he could just ask her.

"And how would I know?" She asked coldly before turning to storm from the office. When she'd been woken up about the entire fiasco, she should have politely refused to be reeled into the mess and went right back to sleep. Sirius _needed_ to die. It could change too many things if he didn't.

She was almost out when Dumbledore cleared his throat and spoke again.

"I may have found a solution to your problem, Ms. Granger." He said very calmly, like they were talking about the weather.

Hermione turned away and stalked back to his desk.

"And you're asking to be relinquish exactly what for this solution?" She asked, wondering if he was completely serious or just using her situation to get what he needed. After all, he was the one who put the idea in Harry's head that sacrificing his life was the only way.

Before Dumbledore could answer, Harry and Ron were in the floo, panic in their eyes as they yelled out their destination.

Hermione gasped, fear gripping her heart as the entire situation sank in. So no matter what, they were meant to entire into that fireplace.

"He's not there. But Voldemort is waiting for him. You _must_ get the Order of the Phoenix. Harry will die without their help." She rushed to the floo, the ugly green powder in her hand and turned back to Dumbledore. "I'm sorry."

Hermione dropped it into the floo, following after Harry. Maybe he was a bloody fool in her own time, but the Wizarding World depended on his survival, and she wouldn't return to a world ridden with war. She ran through the corridors until she caught up with Harry and Ron.

"He's not here, Harry! Voldemort is tricking you, he's using the connection between the two of you to lure you here." Hermione tried to reason with him but he was beyond listening, perhaps beyond comprehension.

So she ran with him, realizing that she'd have to fight to. She tried to steady her thoughts, her feelings. She'd be faced again with the man that had, through his vicious measures and even worse followers, taken everything from her.

It didn't take long for it to happen. One second they were enacting one of the few things she had a clear memory about, the next they were faced with Lord Voldemort himself. Hermione panicked, not sure she could actually do it, be there, in the same room as him and Lucius, and especially Bellatrix.

But then his eyes, so full of a disgusting evil, turned on her.

"And you're not quite who you say you are." Voldemort said curiously and with a swish of his wand, he had his hand around her jaw. "Not at all. Though the disgusting Mudblood is still there, suffering under the weight of another being inside of her body."

Hermione gasped, reaching for her wand. Before she could do anything against him, however, he threw her wand away and pointed his wand at her chest.

"Let's see who you really are." Voldemort whispered darkly and cast a wordless spell.

One second, she looking into his eyes, the next she was looking up at the ceiling of the Department of Mysteries. She jumped up quickly to see Voldemort still held her younger self, who was conscious, and she was... She was in _her_ body. Her hair was longer, wavy rather than bushy, and she was wearing her _own_ clothes, rather than robes.

She reached to her side to find her wand in the holster at her side. With a spell that left her lips quicker than she could think it, she sent Voldemort flying from her younger self, then the Order was there and the real battle began.

* * *

She moved through the Death Eaters with a vicious clarity. Fighting, something she could do, something she was comfortable with. She aimed to disarm them, to knock them unconscious, not to kill them. As she fought and weaved her way through them, she found herself next to Dumbledore, who was fighting with Voldemort. Harry and Sirius were fighting side by side, moving together as one.

She watched as Sirius was separated from Harry and started his deadly battle with Bellatrix and realized she couldn't let it happen again, damn the consequences. She jumped between the pair and deflected one of the deranged witch's curses with deft ability.

Before she could cast another, Hermione disabled her, too. She toyed with the idea of just killing the witch. It would take away her pain, her torture, the torment that lay in her heart. But would she return to Draco if she did? Would she still work with him, become his best friend, would be become her beacon of hope?

She turned away as the Death Eater's and Voldemort disappeared. Dumbledore walked over to her, his eyes void of the sparkle that so often graced them.

"I think we have a serious conversation to hold, Ms. Granger." He said gravely and Hermione nodded.

Dumbledore held out a watch and motioned for everybody present to grasp onto it. Once everybody was touching it, a tugging sensation started at her navel.

* * *

A/U: Another one. As I already have the idea in my head, review if you're reading, and I promise to write and post the next chapter by tomorrow, this time. I think... Hahaha, you'll just have to review and see. Anyway, thanks for reading and, hopefully, liking my story.

I know, shorter than the others, and I already write pretty short chapters. And no Draco in this one. Buuuuuut that's because I have big plans for him next chapter.

REVIEW! (:


	6. Chapter Five

_"Maybe we're all past the point of redemption. Maybe our sins are far to great. Maybe we don't deserve the rest that it would give us. Maybe I've done so much wrong that my children's children will still be trying to redeem our name. But to quit trying, to be content with that, would mean having to ask for redemption for that as well. Maybe I'm no better than you. But nobody will look back and say I didn't fight to redeem_ _myself."_

-Hermione Granger.

**Chapter Five:  
**

Hermione looked around the Burrow stiffly while everyone watched her with slightly awed expressions. She couldn't clearly remember the last time she'd been in the Burrow, nor could she remember the last time she'd been welcomed in an Order meeting.

"Ms. Granger, would you like to share with everyone what we've already discussed?" Dumbledore asked her pleasantly.

She noticed her younger self look up, confused, before she realized she wasn't the one being addressed and wondered briefly when she'd lost the need to please everyone. She still wanted to help, still felt the burning need to impart her knowledge on those that knew less than her, but she no longer felt the need to prove herself, to do whatever asked of her.

"I'm from the future." She said simply, rather uncomfortable with all the eyes on her.

She saw the calculating look in the eyes of her younger version and the gasps of disbelief from the others. Really, though, what other explanation was there? They'd come to the fact that it was not only true, but also the only plausible and logical conclusion in their own time.

"Then you know what happens next?"

Hermione looked into the bright brown eyes of her counterpart. It was an odd sensation being faced with yourself, albeit a younger self.

"I did." Hermione shrugged. "That was before tonight, before this happened."

"What happened?" Bushy hair swung back and forth and she decided to think of the younger version as Mione, an unfortunate nickname she'd always hated. "Some theories suggest that time travel is meant to happen and that the world is the place it is because of the ripples that the person causes when the travel back."

"It's a silly theory." Hermione snorted. "You change everything. This changes everything."

"And what theories do you have to prove that wrong?" Mione asked, challenge in her eyes.

"I may be older and different, but I'm still you. Meaning, I'm still intelligent, after seven years, I'd dare say quite a bit more so." Hermione said coldly, then lifted a finger and pointed at Sirius. "And all proof I need lies in him. He survived. He's alive. Bellatrix did _not_ kill him, he did _not_ fall through the veil."

"I'm dead in the future?" He shook his head, face breaking into a smile. "You can't be serious, because I'm Sirius."

Hermione didn't find his joke amusing but cracked a small smile nonetheless. She hadn't realized she'd missed his stupid jokes regarding his name.

"Yes, and you still should be." She shrugged at the outraged gasps and the way his face fell. "I shouldn't have interfered."

"Hermione!" Molly Weasley gasped, before giving her a stern look.

"I'm sorry. That was... unnecessary." Hermione breathed out through her mouth hard, it was difficult to be around everybody like nothing was wrong. At least she didn't have to pretend to be a teenager anymore. "But that doesn't matter now. This could change everything. I don't see how, you know. One death is insignificant in the grand scheme of things, I suppose. But there's nothing solid on time travel."

"Now that we know, we can all research. As valuable as information would be, it's probably best you don't tell us anymore than you already have. We need to send you home." Remus said, always the voice of reason. Hermione sent him a brief smile.

"Don't tell us anything?" Harry asked, stepping up and speaking for the first time. "She could have all kinds of valuable information for us. She could tell us how to defeat Voldemort." He turned to look at her and she stared hard into his green eyes. He didn't turn away. "We have won, haven't we?"

"We have, but I can't tell you how." Hermione shook her head. "As Remus said, it's best I don't say anything. By doing so, I could change my world back home and even the tide of this war. You'll figure it out on your own and I cannot change that. I won't change that."

"You could save hundreds of lives! You saved Sirius. How many more of us will die? Aren't you willing to at least try?" Mione asked and Hermione sent her a cynical smile.

"More people will die than I'd like to even guess at. But my world is a good one. It's a happy one. And though everybody suffers from some loss or another, they're moving on. They're _happy_. To take a chance at twisting that into something new and unknown would be silly. This is a war, after all. Casualties cannot be avoided. You'll learn one day that some people just die. Sometimes for no good reason."

Mione shook her head. "You _can't_ be me. I would never take life so lightly."

Hermione shrugged out of her cloak, bearing her arms for the entire room to see. Maybe it was callous and spiteful, but let them see what their beliefs would get them.

"This is what happens when you trust in such silly notions." Hermione pointed to the Dark Mark branded into her arm with a muggle brand. It was one of the worst of her scars. "This is what you get when you try to save everyone. Nobody will escape this war unscathed. War isn't meant to be pretty. It's not like your books tell you." Sending a look at Harry, she shook her head. "And sometimes the hero isn't really all the heroic. Sometimes they understand that you have to get dirty. That you have to leave your people to the wolves."

Harry flinched back as understanding at her words filled him. As it were, though, she wouldn't change it. She wouldn't trade her stay at the manor for a future with a body that wasn't mangled and marked. She was stronger for it.

* * *

Draco paced the room, watching the man out of the corner of his eye. He still wasn't being cooperative. _Nothing_ helped. No truth potions, no spells, not invading his mind. It was like he had one agenda and his entire being depended on it. The problem was, that agenda seemed to be telling Draco absolutely no information.

Finally, Draco crossed the room and stopped in front of the wizard.

"Where is she?" He asked in a controlled voice. Losing control, he'd decided in the safety of the Manor, was not the best way to get to the man.

Just as always, there was no answer. Draco gave a frustrated growl and the man gave him a disgusted look.

"How the mighty have fallen. A Malfoy worried over a Mudblood." The man finally spoke.

Draco hit him roughly across the face.

"I'd advice against using that word in regards of her." Draco snarled, close to losing the control that seemed so important moments ago.

"Your father would be furious."

"Then it's a good thing he's dead." Draco said with a sneer, distractedly pushing his blonde locks away from his forehead.

"You're a disgrace to wizarding world."

"I'll kill you for this." Draco whispered in a vicious voice. "I betrayed everything for her. You think I won't search to the ends of the earth for her? The last person you should have went after was Hermione Granger."

"If you wish." The man lunged, then, and Draco belatedly realized that perhaps he shouldn't have tied the ropes himself. How very muggle of him.

A strange orange light overcame him, and Draco felt as if he was suddenly falling.

* * *

As the man disappeared with a _Pop!_ and reappeared in his own home, he was greeted by the fellow Death Eaters, a new generation of them determined to follow through with Voldemort's ideology, even in his death.

"The mudblood was sent back and will remember nothing, stuck again as a teenager."

He didn't mention he'd sent the Malfoy patriarch back. He'd sent him back as he was. The spell from before was complicated and took far too much magic. But it would be enough. The mudblood would want nothing to do with the boy turned man that had tortured her through school. It wasn't a part of the plan, but it would work. And with nothing being known on the time magic he was using, he knew very little himself, they would surely never find a way back.

* * *

Hermione was sitting in the corner of the room, watching as everyone talked about her and the plan and research like she wasn't there. Really, as if she hadn't done enough research herself. And she wasn't stupid. She realized that the people in the room were smart. But if she couldn't find anything, she had little hope they would. Dumbledore had already said as much, earlier.

With a jolt, she realized that he had mentioned that he might have a solution to her problem.

"You said you had a solution before." She said, causing everybody to stop and look at her.

Dumbledore frowned. "When you were in your younger body. Now, however, you're here. I had hoped to return you to the future since you were not in your correct vessle. This, to use your wording, changes everything."

Hermione frowned, "Well, what was the solution before? The spell behind it, the runes, the entire working idea of it. Perhaps I could do some digging around a change the basis of it to suit my needs."

"That's very complicated magic, dear." Molly interrupted. "Even the Department of Spells and Magical Runes has problems with those sorts of things."

"Then it's a good thing I now lead an elite version of such a department in my own time." She snapped, not happy at being talked down to.

Of course, that wasn't completely true. Her department was more of a mix of two, with cursebreaking thrown in there.

Before anybody could protest about the dangers, as she was sure would be what was coming next, a body collapsed in the middle of the room. The man climbed gracefully to his feet and Hermione gasped. Impossible.

"Malfoy!" Harry growled, knowing it was him even though age was different.

Hermione let out a sigh of relief. So she wasn't the only one seeing him. She pulled out her own wand, stepping closer to Draco and daring anyone to raise their wands against him. Draco's whole body went from uneasy and stiff to relaxed and confident the moment he saw her.

"I see you're alive." He drawled in a bored tone.

Hermione turned to look at him disapprovingly.

"May 1st?" Hermione said in a tight voice.

"Versus October 18th, it was a breeze." He said back simply and she dropped her wand, circling him.

"What in the bloody hell are you doing here?"

"You decided to go on vacation without me." He shrugged, the move looking graceful. "And what would a vacation be without your favorite person? I decided to join. Though, had I known you'd decided to spend your time with this lot, I would have stayed home."

"You're friends with him?" Mione shrieked. "I'd never willingly associate with _Malfoy_."

Draco turned scathing eyes on her. "And I'd never willingly spend time with the likes of you."

Hermione turned on him with narrowed eyes and hit him.

"Not you. You're much more fun than her." He gave a small smirk that looked very unpleasant.

"Well, I'd never spend time with your younger self either." She huffed, crossing her arms.

"Don't blame you. Bloody coward. Bit daft, too." Draco said seriously, but Hermione took it as it was, an apology and a joke so she cracked a smile.

"Please tell me you know a spell home." She said instead of replying to that.

"I was hoping you'd put that mind of yours to work and figured that out on your own." He said seriously and she deflated a little.

"You're useless." She said after a moment and sat back down.

"You came after her?" Dumbledore said, a bit curiously and Draco turned to his old headmaster, shame filling him.

"More like was sent after her."

"What do you mean?" Hermione asked, standing back up.

"The wizard that sent you here got the better of me." He admitted grudgingly. "I've been... asking him where you are. He seemed to think it was appropriate to send me back to you."

"So you were trying to find me, at least." Hermione sighed, rubbing her temples before sitting back down.

"I'll always try to find you. No escape now." Draco winked at her. "The wedding sort of sealed that deal, anyway."

"Wedding?" Mione shrieked and Hermione sent him a death glare.

"You neglected the fact that you're a Malfoy, Hermione?" Draco laughed. "How very Malfoy of you to deceive your friends."

If they were alone, Hermione would have used one of the Unforgivable Curses on him. Perhaps the Killing Curse. Surely, he deserved it. As it was, the room went into an uproar again and she sank deeper into her chair. It would be a while before they got anywhere.

* * *

**A/N:** I know. I'm terrible. I'm a horrible person. _I_ deserve the Killing Curse. But then I wouldn't be able to finish this. SOOOOO let's forgive me, yes? I'm so sorry about the delay. Things have been hetic. Work has gotten more demanding rather than less. I hate tax time.

Plus I'm moving and my dog is pregnant so there have been lots of vet appointments and very little time to write. I'm sooooo sorry, again.

But, you can totally tell me how much you hate me by **review**. And, you know, let me know what you thought of the chapter. Things should go much more smoothly now. From the beginning, it was never my intention on keeping Draco and Hermione apart.

Buuuuuuuuut, you've got to admit, it is interesting. Married? Who would have guessed. Oh, gosh, I'm finishing up here and patiently (I'm lying. I've very impatient) awaiting for reviews so you can tell me your thoughts on this! Thanks.

Also, if anybody is looking for a good fiction book, if you'd like to stop by on Wattpad and read my story, The Contender, and give it some love, that would be awesome. It's an awesome story. I promise. You can find it by either looking up TheConquestWriter or The Contender. You'll love Ryla.


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